SINGAPORE, June 15 — Jumping up and down in joy on their skiff 49er boat as it crossed the finish line, Griselda Khng and Sara Tan laughed as an off-balance chest bump turned awry, with Khng falling backwards into the dinghy.

But the delighted duo had every reason to celebrate after winning their first-ever SEA Games gold together. It helped Singapore top the five-nation SEA Games sailing competition with 10 gold, seven silver and a bronze — it was also their best performance since they won seven golds at the 2005 edition in the Philippines — with Malaysia (7-5-2) and Thailand (2-6-8) second and third respectively.

But it was also especially sweet for Khng — a gold medallist in the optimist class at the 2005 Games — who found her second wind after almost giving up the sport five years ago.

Khng and then-420 partner Sakina Mohd Halim had failed to gain selection for the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou, but they pressed on and paid their own way to compete in overseas regattas for six months to earn qualification.

After that failed, Khng stopped sailing as she could not find a suitable partner, and instead focused on her studies at Nanyang Technological University. However, after a brief comeback at the 2012 World Championships, Khng found herself chasing for Olympic qualification after linking up with former 470 sailor Tan.

“I missed sailing for sure, but I just didn’t have anyone to sail with,” said Khng after today’s victory. “But it’s not like I was in a dark period of my life, I just did what normal people do, study, hang out with friends.

“When the 49er was introduced as a new Olympic class, I just jumped in with Sara. We enjoy sailing together and have a good relationship. It’s always been my dream to compete at the Olympics and hopefully we can win a medal there. I feel God has really blessed me and given me this second chance and I must seize it.”

Khng’s victory came on the final day of 2015 SEA Games sailing programme at the National Sailing Centre, with Singapore also securing gold in the women’s youth 420 (under-19) and women’s keelboat match racing class.

Despite poor wind conditions delaying the races, there was no stopping Khng and Tan, who notched a perfect score of 10 points after winning all their races to finish ahead of Thailand’s Patteera Meeyousamsen and Nichapa Waiwai (24), and Malaysians Rufina Tan and Connie Tsen (25), who were second and third, respectively.

Team-mates Samantha Annabelle Neubronner and Elisa Yukie Yokoyama then clinched another gold for Singapore in the women’s youth 420 (under-19) class, winning the regatta with a two-point cushion of 16 points over Malaysia in the two-team event.

Male youth 420 pair Matthew Scott Lau and Loh Jia Yi also won a silver, with Malaysia’s Muhamad Uzair Amin Mohd Yusof and Naquib Eiman Shahrin claiming gold before the medal race with an unassailable lead of 12 points.

Over at the Marina Bay, tricky wind conditions and a two-and-a-half hour delay proved a boon and bane for the Singaporeans. The men’s keelboat team of Stanley Chan, Colin Ng and Anthony Kiong, and men’s Laser team of Colin Cheng, Ryan Lo and Scott Glen Sydney lost the gold to the Philippines and Malaysia, respectively.

With racing cut-off time set at 5.30pm, the women’s Laser Radial teams from Singapore and Malaysia — who were tied at 1-1 — were unable to complete their races, with the Singaporeans losing out on gold after a countback on head-to-head victories. But the women’s keelboat team of Jovina Choo, Terena Lam, Dawn Liu and Daniella Ng secured Singapore’s 10th gold after winning all their round-robin races despite the competition ending prematurely.

Singapore Sailing Federation president Benedict Tan said the team had performed “above expectations”. The 1994 Asian Games champion also noted the performance of the windsurfers, where Audrey Yong captured Singapore’s first gold since the late Kelly Chan at the 1989 SEA Games. He said: “Traditionally, our windsurfing is weak and there is a huge gap with kingpins Thailand. I’m glad we invested (in windsurfing) and made a breakthrough.” — TODAY